New Neighbors.

Some of our neighbors just moved out and put their house up for sale. We haven't known these people very well, but our kids have played with their kids a few times. We are sorry to see them go, but the circumstances behind their move are beyond their control.

So now we are faced with the upcoming event of having "new" neighbors move in one day. Isn't it funny how, when faced with the prospect, we will daydream about those "perfect" neighbors who will move in next door or down the street?

The truth is, they won't be perfect, no matter who they are. My best friend could move her family in (not going to happen, I'm just making a point) and it would be cool for awhile, but eventually we would begin to see our differences. Does it really matter? Should our differences supersede the fact that we live on the same block? Do those differences free us from the obligation of really knowing each other?

We are all in this together, even if our only bond is that we live on the same street. We should be "community". Yes, there is one big hurdle - cars. We live a suburban life, so we don't shop at the same stores, our kids don't go to the same schools, we don't participate in the same activities. So we have to be intentional about knowing our community; or sometimes we have to be forced into it.

We all can remember what happened in the days following 9-11. Suddenly our sense of community was bolstered by tragedy. We came out of our houses, blinking like moles in the new light of community, after years of hiding behind our busy private lives. We were fresh in the staggering realization of the commonality we shared because of those events; we are Americans first and foremost. Only after that are we white or black, Christian or Atheist, rich or poor, young or old.

We stood together in the street, in awe of the silent skies (we live in the flight approach path of an international airport). We watched together, awe-stricken, as the British Parliament sang our national anthem in a show of solidarity. We realized on one fateful day that when push comes to shove, when all hell breaks loose, we may have to rely on each other as neighbors and as friends, not only out of a sense of community, but for our very survival. In those first days, we didn't really know what had happened, and we feared it was only the beginning.

Much of that has faded away, and in these 5 years that have passed, we have forgotten how much we meant to each other. Now, we will have new neighbors who were not part of our community in those early post-9/11 days. They won't share that history with us. But I hope they will be welcomed as if they were always here.

In the end, what I really hope for is people who are open to getting to know us, people we can engage with in some way on this journey called 'life'.

Do you know your neighbors? How well do you know them? A passing "Hi" on the street? On a first-name basis? Been invited into their home? Watched each other's kids? Weekly coffee/dinner dates? Brought them meals when they were sick? Grieved with them at the loss of a pregnancy?

How important is it to you to know your neighbors?